river, were, in ancient times, styled Aniran. Hence the inscriptions on the ancient Persian coins recently interpreted by two able orientalists, Sacy und Sir William Ouseley, bear "the worshipper of Ormuzd, the excellent Ardeshir, king of the kings of Iran and Aniran, celestially descended from the gods." Sacy supposes that the name Aniran simply implies the negative of Iran, or the various subject countries not contained within its limits; and probably what, in more modern times, has been styled Touran, which in a wide acceptation may extend to Tatarv, or the western part of central Asia, but in a more limited sense means Great and Little Bucharia.

Extent. From the mountains and deserts which, with the river Araba, constitute the eastern frontier towards Hindostan, Persia extends more than 1200 miles in length, to the western mountains of Elwend, and other limits of Asiatic Turkey. From south to north, from the deserts on the Indian sea, in all ages left to the Ichthyophagi, or wild tribes of Arabs who live on fish, to the other deserts near the sea of Aral are about 1000 British miles.

Population. The original population of the mountainous country of Persia appears to have been indigenous, that is no preceding nation can be traced; and in the opinion of all the most learned and skilful inquirers, from Scaliger and Lipsius down to Sir William Jones, this nation is Scythic, or Gothic, and the very source and fountain of all the celebrated Scythian nations. While the southern Scythians of Iran gradually became a settled and civilized people, the barbarous northern tribes spread around the Caspian and Euxine seas; and besides the powerful settlements of the Getx and Massagetx, the Gog and Magog of oriental authors, and others on the north and east of the great ridge of mountains called Imaus, or Belur Tag, they detached victorious colonies into the greater part of Europe many centuries before the christian era.*

The ancient Medes and Parthians, in the north of Persia, appear however to have been of Sarmatic, or Slavonic origin, and to have spread from their native regions on the Volga, towards the Caucasian mountains, along which ridge they passed to the south of the Caspian, the ancient site of Media and Parthiene. The grand chain of Caucasus forms a kind of central point of immigration and emigration from the east and west whence the great variety of nations and languages that are traced even in modern times. The late very learned and excellent Sir William Jones, who did honour to his country and century, has repeatedly expressed his opinion that while the Parsi and Zend, or proper and peculiar Persian language, is of the same origin with the Gothic, Greek, and Latin; the Pehlava is Assyrian, or Chaldaic. This testimony rather militates against that of many illustrious classical authors; as we should expect the Pehlavi, or in other words any second grand dialect in this country, to have been Slavonic; but from the inscriptions on the coins of a dynasty, confessedly and peculiarly Persian, which are Pehlavic, it appears that this was merely a more polished dialect, adopted from their western neighbours of Syria; who, from extensive

See the Author's Dissertation on the Scythians, or Goths, in his Inquiry into the History of Scotland, two vols. 8vo.

commerce and other advantages, had become more opulent, intelligent, and civilized. This difference between the written language and the colloquial is even now common in many oriental countries; as for instance the Birman empire and Siam : and oriental manners have been perpetually the same. It is probable that the Slavonic language of the Parthians and Medes, though sometimes superior and ruling tribes, was soon lost, as usual, in that of the greater number, and is little to be distinguished from that of the Persian natives. In modern times the Arabs and the Turcomans have ruled in Persia, and the Afgans, probably a Caucasian tribe, in Hindostan, without effecting any change in the native language.

Progressive Geography. The contests of ancient Persia, with Greece and the Greek colonies established in Asia Minor, then within the wide limits of the Persian empire, have rendered the ancient geography of this country not a little luminous. Herodotus, the father of history, was born at Halicarnassus, one of these colonies; and his account of the twenty Satrapies, or great provinces of the Persian empire, in the reign of Darius Hystaspes, or Ghushtasp, has been ably illustrated in a late work of Major Rennell. The present design however only embraces the modern provinces, and limits; and the former may be thus arranged, proceeding from the west towards the north-east after remarking that the limits of the ancient and modern provinces often coincide, as they consist of rivers and ranges of mountains.

Provinces.

1. Georgia, or more properly Gurgustan, in which may be included Daghistan and Shirvan. These may be considered as constituting the Albania of the ancients; a name applied in different quarters to mountainous regions. The ancient Iberia to the west is now chiefly the Imeritia of European Turkey, on the other side of a branch of the Caucasus.

2. Erivan: a large portion of ancient Armenia, between the river Kur, or Cyrus on the north, and the Aras, or Araxes on the south.

3. Aderbijan including Mogan, the Atropatena of the ancients. 4. Ghilan to the east of the last on the Caspian sea, and synonymous with the ancient Gela.

5. To close the list of countries on the Caspian, Mazendran appears encircled on the south by a lofty branch of the Caucasian chain, the seat of the Mardi of antiquity; to the east of which was the noted province of Hyrcania, now Corcan and Dahistan.

6. Returning to the western frontier there occurs Irac Ajemi, chiefly corresponding with the ancient Ecbatana. In the south of this province is Ispahan, the modern capital of Persia.

7. Chosistan extending to the river Tigris; but the capital Bussora, or Basra, after a recent vain attempt of the Arabs, remains subject to the Turks. This province corresponds with the ancient Susiana.*

8. The celebrated province of Pars, Persis, or Persia proper, surrounded with mountains on the north the west the south and on the

* But the name is antiquated. Niebuhr Descr. de I' Arab. 277. Shuster, or Tostar, is now the name of a large province Loristan is in Shuster. To the west in the country of Havisa, the Ahwaz of D'Anville. The tribe Kiab if on the south of Havisa. Ib.

east separated by a desert from Kerman. Fars contains the beautiful eity of Shiraz, with Istakar and the ruins of Persepolis.

9. Kerman, the ancient Carmania.

10. Laristan, a small province on the Persian Gulf to the south-east of Fars, of which some regard it as a part; nor does the subdivision seem to be known in ancient times, though the long ridge of mountains on the south of Fars, and generally about sixty British miles from the Persian Gulf, seem here naturally to indicate a maritime province; which, if the ancient Persians had been addicted to commerce, would have been the seat of great wealth, by intercourse with Arabia, Africa, and India. But this high spirited nation of horsemen and warriors was totally averse from maritime enterprize, either of war or trade, whe ther from a contempt of the Arabian fish-eaters on their coast; or more probably from particular precepts of Zerdust or Zoroaster, the founder of their religion, as Hyde has explained, which rendered a maritime life incompatible with the practice of their faith. In modern times Ormus and Bussora shew that Uio Persian Gulf is adapted to extensive commerce, which was indeed carried on here in the reigns of the Arabian chalifs. Mr. Franklin, who in 1786 passed from Abu Shehar, or Busheer, to Shiraz, found the mountains in this southern part extremely precipitous, and the summits covered with snow in the end of March; a circumstance unexpected in southern Persia, and in a latitude nearer the line than Cairo.

11. To the east of Kerman is the large province of Mekran, which extends to the Indian deserts, and is the ancient Gadrustan or Gedrosia. This province has always been unfertile, and full of deserts; and classical geography here presents only one mean town called Pura, probably Borjian on the most western frontier. The extensive sea coast on the Indian ocean, far from being the seat of commerce, scarcely presents one harbour, being almost an uniform line of sterility, inhabited by Arabs, like most of the southern coasts of Persia which are divided by mountains and deserts from the fertile and cultivated land.

12. Segistan, another wide frontier province towards India, was chiefly the Arachosia and Saranga of antiquity; while the province of Paropamisus in the north-east encroached on Candahar, and the modern limits of Hindostan.

13. The grand and terminating division of modern Persia in the north-east is Corasan, bounded by the Gihon or OxUs on the northeast and on the south by the lake of Zere, or Zurra, the grand Aria Palus of antiquity. The classical provinces comprized within Corasan are in the north Margiana and in the south Aria.

Besides these provinces, and exclusive of Asiatic Turkey on the west the ancient Persian empire comprised Bactriana or Balk, which may be termed a wide and well watered kingdom of between 300 and 400 British miles square; and on the other side of the Oxus, Sogdiana, or the country on the river Sogd, which passes by modern Samarcand.* Nay the fifteenth satrapy of Herodotus comprises the Sacx and Caspii, pro

There is either a prodigious error in Ptolemy, or his Maracanda is in the west of the country of Balk, perhaps the modfwu Maralad. The Maracanda •f Arrian is clearly Sanarcaud.

bably the country of Shush, and some other tribes nearer the Caspian sea, for it would be bold to comprise in the Persian domains any part of Scythia beyond the Imaus, or in other words, of the country of the Seres; for Ptolemy's exterior Scythia is a mere strip, and probably only represents the hills and forests on the east side of the Belur Tag. This province of the Saca and Caspii adjoined on the west to Corasmia, which belonged to the sixteenth satrapy, and is now the desert place of Kharism, with the small territory of Khiva.

The countries last mentioned form so considerable a part of what is called Independent Tatary, and have in all ages been so intimately connected with Persian history, that some account of them shall be annexed to this article; which joined with that in the Chinese empire, will complete the description of the countries between the dominions of that great state and those of Russia and Persia, so far as the very imperfect materials will allow.

The most recent division of Persia into two kingdoms, and some small independencies, can be weighed with greater accuracy after a short view of its modern history, which will follow the historical epochs and antiquities. But it must not be omitted that the progressive geography of this celebrated country may be traced through Strabo, Pliny, the historians of Alexander, and other classical sources; and afterwards through the Arabian authors Ebn Haukal, Edrisi, Abulfeda, &c. &c. to the modern labours of Chardin, and other intelligent travellers.

Historical Epocrs. The chief historical epochs of the Persian empire may be arranged in the following order.

1. The Scythians, or barbarous inhabitants of Persia, according to the account of Justin conquered a great part of Asia, and attacked Egypt about 1400 years before the reign of Ninus the founder of the Assyrian monarchy; that is so far as the faint light of chronology can pretend to determine such remote events, about 3660 years before the Christian era. The Egyptians, a people of Assyrian extract, as the Coptic language seems to evince, were from superior local advantages civilized at a more early period; and their genuine chronology seems to begin about 4000 years before Christ. The venerable historical records contained in the Scriptures attest the early civilization and ancient polity of the Egyptians; but as the Assyrians spread far to the east of Judea, they seem to be silent concerning the Persians, except a satrap or two be implied. The first seat of the Persian monarchy was probably in the north-east on the river Oxus; while the Assyrians possessed the Euphrates and the Tigris, and the south-west of Persia. There is no evidence whatever, from records, remains of antiquity, or any probable induction, that this planet has been inhabited above six er seven thousand years. The invention and progress of the arts, the mythologies and chronologies of all nations, except the Hindoos, indicate this term as the utmost limit; before which, if men had existed, indelible traces of them must have appeared, whereas history can account for every relic that is found. For the great antiquity of the earth there are many evidences; but none for the antiquity of man.

The history of the Assyrian empire begins with Ninus about 2160 years before Christ, who is said to have formed an alliance with the king of Arabia, and, in conjunction with him, to have subdued all Asia,

except India and Bactriana; that is, according to the ancient knowedge, he subdued Asia Minor and the west of Persia.

2. Zoroaster king of Bactriana is said to have been contemporary with Ninus, and to have invented magic; that is, he was a wise man, who could produce uncommon effects by common causes. But the history of this Persian lawgiver is lost in remote antiquity. The city of Babylon, not far to the south of Bagdad, being the capital of Assyrian power, it is likely that it extended over great part of western Persia: nor is it improbable that what is now called Arabia Deserta was, at so remote a period, a productive country. Nineveh, said to have been founded by Ninus, appears to have stood opposite to Mosul, about 30O British miles to the north of Babylon; but the history of the kingdoms denominated from these two cities is foreign to the present purpose.

3. Cyrus founds what is called the Persian empin:, 557 years before the Christian era, and soon after takes Babylon. This great event may be said only to have disclosed the Persians to the civilized nations of the west, for the native Persian histories ascend to Kayumarras, great grandson of Noah, and the ancient traditions chiefly refer to ware against Touran and India, which indicates the primitive eastern position of the people. But these are mingled with improbable fables concerning the foundation of some cities in the west, as Shiraz, Persepolis, Sec while it is impossible, considering the proximity of the Assyrian power, that these cities could have been founded till after Cyrus led the Persians from the north and the east to the south-west.

4. The overthrow of the first Persian empire by Alexander, B. C. 328, followed by the Greek monarchs of Syria, and the Grecian kingdom of Bactriana; of which last an interesting history has been compiled by the learned Bayer. It commenced about 248 years before Christ, and contained several satrapies, among which was Sogdiana. The kings were a first and second Theodotus, who were followed by the usurper Euthydemus, and Menander, in whose reign, or that of his successor Eucratides, the Greeks under Demetrius are said to have subdued a great part of India; and Apollodorus, the Bactrian historian, asserts that Eucratides possessed one thousand cities. He was succeeded by his son, who seems to have been of the same name; and a coin of one of these princes has been published by our learned author, who advances many arguments to prove that the Greeks of Bactriana imparted the first lineaments of science to the Hindoos.

5. The Parthian empire, which likewise began about 248 years before Christ. This was a mere revival of the Persian empire under a

new name.

6. Ardshur, or Artaxerxes, about the year 220 of the Christian era, restores the Persian line of kings; this dynasty being called Sassanides: and the Greek legends of the Parthian coins are followed by Pehlavic, recently explained by Sacy and Ouseley.

7. The conquest of Persia by the Mahometans, A. D. 636. As the position of the state often determines its destiny, this Arabian empire may be assimilated with the Assyrian of antiquity. The native kingdom was revived in Corasan, A. D. 820; and after several revolutions resumed its former situation.

8. The accession of the house of Bouiah, A. D. 934.